Pages

Friday, March 4, 2011

Pizza Party

It's that time of year again. We all know what I am talking about. When the weather sucks the big one; I personally get to tired of dealing with it so I end up staying in most of the time dreaming about the day when I don't have to scrape off my car. Midterms and projects pile up and stress is at an all time high. And my social life seems to be on hold until the sun comes out again.

But how to kill the winter blues? Well I decided to do what I do best and throw a dinner party! But not just any dinner party - a pizza party. I gathered up my girls, divided up the grocery list and the result? One friggan amazingly delicious dinner.

Keeping in true "starving student" style, I made a grocery list and gave each guest a list of things to bring to the party. I aimed for everyone to spend approximately $6-8 on ingredients, and I supplied the pizza dough and sauce. I bought some pizza dough from the International Bakery at the Covent Garden Market and I also tried to make my own Whole Wheat and Honey Pizza Dough. I was quite hesitant at first because me and pizza dough don't always end up still be friends in the end. But this time, the dough gods were shining down on me and it turned out to be not only edible but quite delicious.

Once everyone arrived, I decided to make a few medium-sized pizzas with combinations of toppings that I knew everyone would love. Stay tuned for when I post the recipes for these tasty dishes at a later date.

Eggplant Pizza 2.0

Pesto, Sundried Tomato, Artichoke and Goat Cheese Pizza

BBQ Chicken Pizza

After we demolished all of these pizzas, everyone got a chance to be the chef and create their own personal pizza! It was such a fun idea because it gave everyone a chance to get down and dirty. Check out the crazy concoctions that came out of my kitchen.

Rachel's Every Vegetable Available Pizza

Naomie's Triangle Pizza

Jen B's Healthy but Still Delicious Pizza

Jen A's Small in Size, Big in Flavour Pizza

Lindsay's "I forgot to add Pesto so I will drizzle it on top" Pizza

Stephanie's Best of Both World Pizza

And guess what. I even attempted a dessert pizza! Do you like how I used the word "attempted"? Well thats because it didn't go completely as planned. But I guess that is the beauty of cooking right? You make mistakes and learn from them. I made a Nutella pizza with fresh fruit and served whip cream on top. It certainly tasted great - and my friends all had their fair share (but that is why they are my friends right? ahah). Let me just say this - when you are making a dessert pizza do not put the fruit on BEFORE you put it in the oven. The bananas got quite angry being in the heat. Lesson learned.

But I have to say, the best party of the whole night, was the fact that everyone pitched in and everyone was excited about it! When someone was chopping, the other was shredding and the clean up afterwards was a breeze! It wasn't just me hosting a party, it was a group of friends having fun together.

So feel like you are stuck in a rut and fighting the winter blues? Grab a bunch of friends and have a great meal without breaking the bank but throwing a totally awesome pizza party.